Lunch Time at CFI

Robbie and I volunteer for an organization in Jerusalem called Christian Friends of Israel. They have been a voice in the community for 26 years. It  is one of compassion, integrity and stability that has gained them respect even among the highly religious Jews.

I am filling in as "cook" until the middle of March. It is hard work, but enjoyable. CFI is truly an awesome place to volunteer. Every one is supportive and encouraging. Here's a short video of a few of our volunteer staff and a link for you to know more about them. If the Lord directs you to invest in the Kingdom of God in Israel, I recommend CFI. I know the heart of the staff is to minister to the precious people in Israel.

Update from Pastor Robbie

The "Replacement Doctrine" is raging in Israel particularly among Christian Arabs. There is an upcoming conference called "Christ at the Checkpoint" in March. You can check it out at: http://www.bethbc.org/christ_at_the_checkpoint_march_2012. Be careful! It sounds great in that there is a call for unity. If you will listen to the leaders, they say things like "Israel (the Jews) is Babylon" and due to be destroyed by God. It is deception that many are following.

Shabbat

This is a longer blog than usual for me. I wanted to share what it is like here on Shabbat. Also, the video is of our trip home on the bus on Friday afternoon. It is not as crowded as so many are off all day on Fridays.

Shabbat is observed in Israel by the religious and the secular-- both Jews and Christians—in a greater way than the churches in America. Between 20 to 40 percent of Americans attend church or synagogue each week (http://hirr.hartsem.edu/research/fastfacts/fast_facts.html). In Israel, even the government observes Shabbat. The buses stop running at about 5 p.m. on Friday evening and do not resume until Saturday evening. Work stops. 84 percent of Israeli Jews observe Shabbat to some degree. The Sabbath is special here. To the Jew in Israel, it is the most important ritual observance in Judaism and is the only ritual observance instituted in the Ten Commandments. The fourth commandment: “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy,” Exodus 20:8.It is also the most important special day, even more important than Yom Kippur (Judaism 101:   http://www.jewfaq.org/shabbat.htm ).  The word "Shabbat" comes from the root Shin-Beit-Tav, meaning to cease, to end, or to rest.

For the ultra-religious, there is a long set of rules that seem extreme; things like not driving your car, not  turning on a light switch, unscrewing the light bulb in the refrigerator so it would not come on, for to them, turning on electricity is kindling a fire. So, whatever light they may need is turned on before Shabbat begins. There are many more rules. They take the instructions given to Moses literally. The religious Jews looked at all the work detail the Israelites did to prepare the Tabernacle and created the list of don’ts from it.

The typical Shabbat begins with leaving the place of work about 2 or 3 p.m. on Friday. (Robbie and I leave CFI, (Christian Friends of Israel, at 2 P.M with the other volunteers.) The house is cleaned and a festive meal is prepared. Shabbat, like all Jewish days, begins at sunset, because in the story of creation in Genesis Ch. 1, you will notice that it says, "And there was evening, and there was morning." From this, we infer that a day begins with evening, that is, sunset. Shabbat candles are lit and a blessing is recited no later than eighteen minutes before sunset. This ritual, performed by the woman of the house, officially marks the beginning of Shabbat. Two candles are lit, representing the two commandments: zakhor (remember) and shamor (observed). The family then attends a brief evening service after which they enjoy a leisurely dinner together. Before dinner, the man of the house recites Kiddush, a prayer over wine sanctifying Shabbat. The usual prayer for eating bread is recited over two loaves of challah. After dinner, the birkat ha-mazon (grace after meals) is recited. By the time all of this is completed, it may be 9PM or later. The family has an hour or two to talk or study Torah, and then go to sleep.

The next morning Shabbat services begin around 9AM and continue until about noon. Robbie and I have noticed that on Saturday mornings, many Jewish families fill the sidewalks singing and laughing as they go up to worship. After services, the family says kiddush again and has another leisurely, festive meal. A stew is a favorite because it can be slow cooked before Shabbat begins thereby avoiding doing work as stated in Ex. 35:3, “You shall not kindle a fire in any of your dwellings on the Sabbath day."  The family studies Torah for a while, talks, takes an afternoon walk, plays some checkers, or engages in other leisure activities. NO TELEVISION! Shabbat ends at nightfall, when three stars are visible, approximately 40 minutes after sunset. At the conclusion of Shabbat, the family performs a concluding ritual called Havdalah (separation, division). Blessings are recited over wine, spices and candles. Then a blessing is recited regarding the division between the sacred and the secular, between Shabbat and the working days. Separating a day as “Holy unto the Lord” blesses the rest of the work week.

    

Most Christian families in the land do not go to that extreme. Some attend congregations on Saturday and some on Sunday. Most will have the Friday evening meal with friends and partake of communion together; then, rest on Saturday. While we do not hold to the ultra legalism because we know the Sabbath was made for man (Mark 2:27), you will find that communion is very important and is taken in the home with friends and family on Friday evening.

So you see, every Friday, most of Israel has communion—the bread and the wine. The Jews would never call it that, but as a believer, we join in observance during Shabbat and remember that Jesus set us free from sin’s bondage. To the Jew, it is remembering the freedom from Egypt. A slave is forced to work. Freedom gives us rights to rest. How precious it is to share freedom God gave us with His “chosen” people.

 “Keeping the Sabbath holy” means a lot of different things and each religion has their own interpretation. Many of us Christians are guilty of it being a “catch-up” day before Monday. However, I believe it would be pleasing to our Heavenly Father, the giver of The Word, to honor this special time with Him.  When Jesus healed on the Sabbath, He wanted us to understand it is right to do good on His Holy day. We are also to rest and remember all He has done for us!! Have an awesome time of celebration this Sunday.

*References:  Judaism 101.com.

Scripture references: Ex. 20: 8, 11; Ex. 16:23-30;  Ex 31: 14-17; Dt. 5: 12-15, and many more. There are 134 scriptures regarding the Sabbath!

Mount Hermon

Mount Hermon has 3 snowy peaks that melt to feed the Jordan. It is the most northern boundary of the Promised Land and is called the Eyes of Israel because of its ability to serve as an early warning post. The winding roads to our destination brought us face to face with what David saw when he penned Psalm 133. Hermon captures massive precipitation that brings life and fertility to all of Israel.

Ps 133:1-134:1 (AMP)

1 BEHOLD, HOW good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!

2 It is like the precious ointment poured on the head, that ran down on the beard, even the beard of Aaron [the first high priest], that came down upon the collar and skirts of his garments [consecrating the whole body]. [Ex 30:25,30.]

3 It is like the dew of [lofty] Mount Hermon and the dew that comes on the hills of Zion; for there the Lord has commanded the blessing, even life forevermore [upon the high and the lowly].

In much the same way, unity among one another brings life and fruitfulness. Disunity cuts off the flowing river of the Holy Spirit that benefits not only yourself but all those around you.

Our purpose was to meet new friends among a Druze village. These are people who are descendants from Jethro, Moses' father-in-law. We had an awesome time of fellowship. You can see the photos. They keep to many traditions that are centuries old.

One video is of our class of English students. They were more advanced that I expected! Mostly they needed to hear actual Americans speaking the language. They can now say "Hey, howya doin" in proper southern English.

Tiberias House

Saturday morning, Robbie and I headed to Tiberias and planned to conduct an English class in a Druze village. We were a week early, so spent time with Maureen and Denise, the stewards of the Tiberias prayer house for Apple of His Eye instead. I have video footage of that house for you. 


Much has been said about Israel striking Iran's nuclear facilities lately. It has been talked since 2009 that I remember. Most of the world does not see the need for Israel to protect herself. It seems the hatred toward Israel is getting stronger but it is business as usual in Jerusalem. They are accustomed to war and threats. A scripture that spoke strongly to me today is from Isaiah 49:25-26:


"For I will contend with the one who contends with you And I will save your sons (children). I will feed your oppressors with their own flesh, And they will become drunk with their own blood as with sweet wine; And all flesh will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior And your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.” 


We don't need to fear since God has the final word on things. Be assured--His Word is the right word. STAND WITH ISRAEL.

Jerusalem Tunnel

 Traveling the Judean Valley never bores me. It's not just the topography, but the knowing every mile holds Biblical significance. With computer in hand as a reference, Robbie and I discuss the various Bible stories.  As we began our assent up to Jerusalem, with mountains on both sides as though we were being swallowed, special scriptures were coming to mind that have been fulfilled in my day. The path we traveled were mountains that had been carved down the middle as it says in Is. 49: 11-12, "I will turn all my mountain into roads, and my highways will be raised up. See, they will come from afar--some from the north, some from the west, some from the region of Aswan." Is. 40:4-5, "Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain; and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken."

Before I close, I will ask something of you: If you see Marcie, Adam, Whitney, Caleb, Owen, Jay or Zoe, give them a really big hug for me...and remember to pray for them. God bless you.

Jerusalem House

Robbie and I volunteer at CFI. I cook and he organizes the mail room. We loved the team and all the wonderful work they do. It is amazing to hear all the stories of how God sends people from all over the world to Jerusalem. Just that 1 ministry has people from Australia, England, Tailand, Belarus, Holland, France, Ethiopia, Africa, 5 states of the U.S. and several Israeli. On Friday, we will head to the Tiberias house to do a repair. On Saturday, we'll meet with our new Druze friends for an English lesson. We'll be teaching with southern style.

 We are praying for you all and send our love. Shalom, y'all.

Shopping for An Iron

Today is Thursday, the 2nd, cold but not raining. We have been drying cloths on an old fashioned clothes rack for 4 days...dryer does not work. Today, most of them are dry and need ironing. I packed a little of everything but an iron. The best deal is in the Old City. Since Robbie needs to exchange some money, we head to Shabon's Money Exchange which is in the Arab section of the Old City. You can see what it is like in the video I've posted. I have a small pocket "Vado" that Whitney gave me. The quality is pretty good but does not focus as quickly as I was walking--sorry.

After the iron purchase, break to eat some sweets, and being cornered by an overly anxious salesman who had a tight grip on my arm (ladies, I thought I was going to have to put my defense training into practice), we visited a Greek Orthodox church. Inside was Helen's Cistern. Helen was Constantine's mother who had a passion for restoring many Christian sights and built churches over them. She discovered a cistern and used the water to build the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. The picture is of the priests of the "Cistern" church.

We would like for you to pray for our trip to Majda Shams close to the Syrian border. We will be teaching English in a Druze village for the next 4 Saturdays. It is a great opportunity to be a witness for Christ. While we cannot "preach", we can take the love of God.

We send our love and peace from Jerusalem...

Masada

Masada is about 60 miles from Jerusalem on the Dead Sea near En Gedi. A nice drive through part of the Judean desert until you come to the wall of the Judean Mountains to the right of you with the Dead Sea on the left. The Dead Sea Scrolls were found in this area, the Qumran caves. We stopped part way to have a nail removed from our tire. We were thankful that a flat or blowout was avoided.

After a nice drive, we took the cable car to the top of Masada. I could not interest Tommie in the hike on foot!!

We finished the day with a nice meal in one of the plazas near the spa hotels and an over night stay in the Masada Youth Hostel. The next morning we were met by the rain and decided that if were were going to be cold and wet we'd prefer to do that in Jerusalem.

Tower of David

On a very windy and cold Tuesday, Tommie and I walked to the post office to pay bills. Yes, bills in Jerusalem, too. Funny thing though, you pay them all at the post office; enter, take a number, wait and pay. At least you save the cost of a stamp.

After business, we hiked up to the old city. Our first stop was lunch at Christ Church. Next, we visit the Tower of David Museum. The Tower of David was left standing during the time of the Roman destruction. The complex is a compilation of every era Israel experienced.

Beginning...

Tommie and I are excited to be in Israel. After 33 years of full-time pastoring, we felt a strong direction toward a life-long love of ours--the Israeli people. Our church, Cornerstone Assembly in Flowery Branch, GA., has shared this vision with us. Being "sent" to Israel as part of their ministry, we are finding such joy and are watching God bless on both end. It is our hope that blogging will keep us all connected.